


My life starts with you

by SandraChan96



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Accidents, Adoption, Allura (Voltron) Lives, Altean Lance (Voltron), BAMF Lance (Voltron), Friends to Lovers, Galra Keith (Voltron), Hurt Lance (Voltron), Hurt Shiro (Voltron), Insecure Keith (Voltron), Keith (Voltron) is a Mess, Mpreg, Multi, Post-War, Protective Shiro (Voltron), References to Depression, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-04
Updated: 2020-12-05
Packaged: 2021-03-05 05:01:36
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 14,514
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25068826
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SandraChan96/pseuds/SandraChan96
Summary: The war was over, earth was rebuild and thing's were finally looking better.After years and years of fighting for the universe, team Voltron finally settled down on earth, starting their lives anew with Keith, surprisingly being the one who to turn his back from fighting altogether. Building up a new life with Shiro and his newly adopted niece, they start an adventure of their own - being a familiy. One simple invitation, however, results in a chain of events neither of team Voltron could ever have imagined.
Relationships: Hunk/Shay (Voltron), Keith/Lance (Voltron), Keith/Lance/Shiro (Voltron), Keith/Shiro (Voltron)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 36





	1. Everything for a starborn dreamer

**Author's Note:**

> I am back! I have been working on this thing for a year now.  
> Somehow, thing's kinda escalated as I had merely planned on it to be a short, sweet story but whatever.  
> Tell me what you think, if you find any mistakes etc.

"Sweetheart, I was selected to represent the Galaxy Garrison during the diplomatic gathering in a couple of movements! It'll be the first event ever since the union of humankind, the renewed Galra Empire and the coalition, so I'll be gone for at least a phoeb," Takashi Shirogane announced one peaceful evening when he was out for dinner with his former right-hand-man slash Black Paladin of Voltron. Nowadays, it wasn’t too often that the two of them got to eat out so leisurely. In such a fancy restaurant nonetheless, so it was honestly a nice change for once. With Shiro, still piloting the Atlas as its captain, while also teaching the new generation of fighter pilots in hand-to-hand combat, he was a busy man. Keith, on the other hand, had a much easier job compared to his former mentor. Something that came with him turning his back to the war in general and seeking comfort in a much more personal job. He had seen enough pain and misery for a lifetime, hell he had lived through it himself, so who could blame him for yearning for some peace? However, his decision to remain on earth for good, didn’t mean he was any less supportive of his old comrades in what they did with their lives now. Especially if it was about his mate.

The expression Shiro wore at just this moment was one of pure joy. With the brightest smile gracing his tender lips and eyes that shone so radiantly, that the ravenette in front of him couldn't help but grin as well. Those were splendid news, even if a huge responsibility came with it, but Keith was convinced there was not one person who was more suitable for that role than Shiro. Especially because it had been quite some time since Shiro had expressed such childlike joy - he hadn't been able to get into space ever since the paladins returned to earth after all, unlike Keith and Lance had. For him, who was a child of the stars, going to space has been his lifelong dream and that was something that hadn't changed, despite the horrors of the imprisonment by the Galra and the five deca-phoebs of war that followed his initial return to the planet. Keith was well aware of it and seeing his eyes light up like that at the mere idea of going into space once more, it reminded Keith of how cute his partner could be. Not that Shiro needed to know that! 

The two of them had been dating ever since their final battle against Sendak, after Keith and Black crashed on earth, leaving Keith in a coma for a couple of movements. Seeing him in such a vulnerable and lifeless state had been a nightmare for Shiro, worse than anything he had to suffer through. It finally made him realize how intimate his feelings for his fellow Paladin and best friend truly were. Although that didn’t mean they simply got together afterwards. In fact, Keith, too dense to recognize romantic advances unless they were thrown directly into his face, surely gave Shiro a hard time. Much to the amusement of the others. At least those who were aware of the raging affection the captain held for the leader of Voltron. A few awkward attempts of confessions later, Shiro had to realize he needed to approach this differently if he wanted Keith to understand. Therefore, Shiro had invited the ravenette to a trip on their hover bikes to the desert, just like in their old quintants. Being the cliché of a hopeless romantic, Shiro confessed while they were observing the sunset that fateful evening. And finally, Keith came to the conclusion that his oh-so-one-sided-crush and his pining were more mutual than he thought. Albeit they kept it to themselves, since a raging war hadn't been the best time and place for a blossoming relationship, and they never came around to reveal their relationship to their fellow teammates. They didn't intend to hide it, it simply happened, since the only places where they showed affection was behind closed doors. Which is also how Shiro discovered how affectionate and cuddly the introvert guy actually was.

Back in the present, Keith realized he had been dreamily staring into his boyfriend's eyes for quite some time now, while he was distracted with thoughts of the past. Apparently, that had flustered his loved one quite a bit, if his flushed face was anything to go by, so he put his hand softly onto Shiro's human one and congratulated him with a little smile flickering across his face, "That's great, babe. I know you will manage this diplomatic stuff better than anyone else could. Well, aside from Allura, that is. Have you decided whether you're going? You know I support your decision as long as you're happy with it."

Instead of answering straight away, Shiro ran his artificial hand through his silver locks, deep in thought. It was a nervous habit he had, one of the things Keith had learned about his lover through simple observation, even long before they started dating. Which meant something was bothering him, and Keith was ready to do anything in his power to rid him of any worry. For now, he took his partners human hand and gave it a tight squeeze. Words weren’t his forte, so his way of comforting people was always through actions, based on his instincts. It had been proved to be right in so many situations in his life, that he knew he could trust his gut feeling.

After a moment of consideration, a troubled expression flitted across Shiro's face and he confessed, „Don't get me wrong, I am honoured to be chosen as the ambassador of humankind, but at the same time I am not sure if I should accept this offer. Especially now that I have Yuuki in my life… She is such a reserved and distant kid ever since I took her in, and I really don't want to leave her behind."

_‘Ah. So, this is about Yuuki. That explains his hesitation,’_ thought Keith to himself.  
Yuuki Shirogane was a shy and withdrawn four-deca-phoeb-old; a cute little girl Shiro had adopted two deca-phoebs ago. It hadn't been planned, but her parents, one of them being Shiro's brother, Ryou, had died in a tragic accident during the rebuilding of their hometown after the war had ended. Shiro had been her only living relative, and sending her to an orphanage had been out of option, thus he ended up taking her in. Of course, she had been distant at first, not trusting her new environment at the age of two, but Shiro's patience had paid off in the end. And he hadn't been alone either, seeing how the Holts had been supporting him ever since they returned from space. Keith, on the contrary, had been entirely overwhelmed by the new situation, seeing how he had been working with the Blade of Marmora at the time. In his defence: returning home to his boyfriend after one deca-phoeb in space and finding him with a child wasn't something he would have expected. And maybe it had been because of his Galra heritage, but the ravenette had fallen in love with this adorable kit instantly. Shiro had been honestly surprised when he found the usually stoic guy cutely doting on the little one for the first time.

Now, however, before Keith got a chance to respond after mulling this over in his head, Shiro spoke up once again with uncertainty in his voice, "I know I am asking a lot of you, but… Are you alright with taking care of Yuuki while I am gone? I'm well aware this is rather sudden, but she has grown truly attached to you and I would feel better if she were in your care, to be honest.”

Without giving it much thought, Keith agreed to his request, never wanting to be in his way of doing the things he loved the most. On the contrary, there wasn’t much to consider either. Now that Keith lived with Shiro, he helped raising her anyway, not to mention she was in the kindergarten like half of the qintant. Thus, taking care of a four-deca-phoeb-old alone shouldn't be too much of a problem if his job was doing exactly that. Right? Especially since she has long gotten used to Keith and their little home. Namely, a cosy three-bedroom apartment with one of the rooms functioning as a guest room, designed after Shiro’s wishes. In this case, it meant it had a Japanese flair, from its general style to its garden, with sliding doors, a wooden porch and even the interior was just like Shiro’s home back in Japan. While it was rather modern, the furniture was far from luxurious. Just how he liked it: The location, slightly more on the outskirts of the district, was pretty much a gift to his introverted boyfriend and daughter and had probably been taken into consideration at the time.


	2. The beginning of a troubling time

Now, three movements later, Keith began regretting his hasty decision slightly. He hadn't expected taking care of his boyfriend's kid would be more stressful than dealing with the wild bunch at the kindergarten he opened. Technically spoken, she was also his child, so he went a little overboard in his mothering from time to time. For Keith, it was something entirely natural, fretting over his kid's well-being, due to the fact that his strong parental instinct was one of the few Galran traits he had inherited. Keith had learned quite a bit about Galran traditions, special traits and instincts in his deca-phoebs with his mom and the other Blades, wanting to know more about how all of it affected his own biology. At first, his fellow paladins had been completely baffled, when they learned that such cruel beings were in fact the most family orientated species they had ever met; a species who thought highly of children. Their cooperation with the Blade of Marmora had allowed them to get a better picture of that particular species. Like that they learned of special needs Keith had had ever since they first met - including habits which weren't, what would one call ‘ _normal_ ’ in human standards. Needs which had been abandoned for far too long, thus they encouraged him to indulge in them as much as he needed to. Even if his fellow Paladins tended to tease him about some of his feline manners. All of them meant well and didn’t give a damn about his heritage - if need be, they defended him altogether. And there had been enough incidents on planets they freed or protected, where the inhabitants had been anything but nice when they somehow learned of his origin. None of Keith’s teammates - _his family_ \- tolerated hostility towards him, or anyone else of their tight-knit group. Where the ravenette had been once ashamed of his inhuman behaviour or needs, his friends had encouraged him enough to give into those, to accept them, especially if anything else would have been bad for him, physically or mentally.

In the end, Keith's instincts and his love for children had actually been his biggest motivation when he decided to build a kindergarten after his retirement from the Blades. Giving children happy memories and a safe place of learning was a nice plus, especially since Keith's childhood had been anything but that. His decision had come as a surprise for the whole team, considering they only ever got to know him as the broody emo kid, a loner who had a hard time connecting with others. Which also meant Keith had been on the receiving end of countless jokes from Lance and the others over the time. Harmless banter in their eyes, Keith, however, had taken serious offence in it and it took an intense discussion with Krolia and Shiro before they realized how much these things unintentionally hurt their fellow Paladin and leader. Once his friends learned more about his traumatizing upbringing, they came to understand just why he kept isolating himself all the time and why he kept putting his life at risk during the war. It had taken time before he opened up and let them in, but their patience paid off ultimately, leading to the strong bond their space-family had even now.

And yet, all his instincts and skills couldn't help him in this situation with the one Yuuki Shirogane. It's not even as if she was a very demanding child - quite the opposite to be exact. But for some reason, Keith struggled with the introvert girl at home. Which was a mystery in itself, seeing how Keith himself was one. Yet, getting Yuuki to eat, sleep, get up and get dressed was difficult even though those two had grown considerably closer over time. As if it wasn't insulting enough, everything went well as soon as they reached his kindergarten. It didn't help at all that Keith felt more irritated than ever, even at the smallest issues, despite not knowing just why he was getting so worked up at times. ' _Patience yields focus_ ' became a mantra he kept repeating under his breath, though he didn't blame Yuuki for anything. He couldn't. She was a closed off child, traumatized at the age of two in that freak accident after all. At least she was growing fonder of Keith each qintant, especially after she witnessed her father acting all sweet and tender with him some time ago.

This morning wasn't any better. The blaring alarms startled the ravenette out of his fitful sleep, though he made no move to shut it off at all. Merely blinking his eyes open, Keith remained in bed, not even considering getting up. His fist slammed into the alarm clock, turning it off in the process before he turned over once more. He was so utterly exhausted and staying in bed sounded so, so tempting right now.  
 _Five more doboshes… Then I'll get up and get ready for today._  
However, the next time he woke up, his breath caught in his throat when he looked at the time on his phone. His phone read 08:30 am, meaning he had 20 doboshes left to get himself and Yuuki dressed, washed up and fed AND rush to the kindergarten. When was the last time he had overslept so badly? Feeling panic settle in, he threw the blanket off himself and jumped right out of bed, only to realize this decision turned out to be a grave mistake. A sudden wave of dizziness overwhelmed him out of nowhere, to the point where he couldn't stay on his feet. The following crash echoing throughout the small house as Keith stumbled straight into the dresser next to his bed, alarmed the four-deca-phoeb-old two rooms down the little hallway. Since she had been awake, seeing how it was way past her usual time to get up, she put her toys away and crept down the hallway to get to the bottom of the noise.  
Once she got to her destination, she stuck her head into Keith's room and asked quietly, "Keef, okay?"  
A groan was all the answer she received, causing the small child to make a face. She shuffled closer to her caretaker, who by now had his head in his hands. His absentminded behaviour didn't sit well with Yuuki and even she came to the conclusion Keith was in no condition to operate that qintant. Just when she was about to look for Keith's phone to call _somebody_ to get him help, the ravenette pulled himself up with the help of the dresser which caused his downfall in the first place and muttered, "Let's get going, okay? You want some waffles today, Yuu? I'll make an exception and buy some before kindergarten today!"

His faked enthusiasm wasn't lost on her, but with the thought of getting waffles for breakfast, her focus quickly shifted towards those. With the prospect of getting her favourite type of breakfast, she got ready in no time, whereas Keith was the one who lacked behind. It was almost funny how this time their roles were reversed. Keith was extra careful, now that he had already collapsed once because he had moved too quickly - he didn't want to risk fainting for real. He did feel like crap, but he pushed it aside to get to work. Something his boyfriend would certainly kick his ass for with something along the line of ' _His health, was more important than work and just as important as Yuuki_.' Riding his modified, children-safe hover bike was probably a bad idea as well, especially considering he had to interrupt their journey twice because of his sudden loss of focus. Just what was wrong with him? In the end, they arrived half a varga too late to face the wrath of a very furious Acxa.

"Keith Kogane, do you have any idea what time it is? Everyone has been waiting for you and the kits are getting impatient! Do you not know how hard it is to contain 13 excited kits?!" Acxa ranted, accidentally using the Galran term for children. _Old habits die hard_ , Keith guessed. Even if he started using the term himself on a regular basis now. Keith blinked owlishly at his colleague, feeling slightly bad for her. Of course, he knew how wild they could get!   
Scratching the back of his head, he mumbled with genuine confusion written all over his face, "Uh… Did we have anything planned for today?"   
Acxa's stared Keith dead in the eye's, probably contemplating murder if her twitching eye was any indicator.

With the most deadpan expression, she retorted, "You are telling me right now that you forgot about the trip to the opening of the new Galaxy Garrison Headquarters _that you organized and planned for movements_." That wasn't a question but a statement, Keith noted, and he felt heat crawling up his face. How could he have forgotten about it? Today was so not his day and it was only morning right now… A tired sigh coming from Acxa pulled the ravenette out of his stupor. Without commenting any more on it, she dragged Keith inside, where he was greeted with enthusiasm from every side. Before long, everyone was sitting in a little bus with Acxa being the driver while Keith was in charge of educating and humouring the little ones during their journey. Even if he lost track of what he was telling them from time to time or repeated himself accidentally. If somebody noticed this and threw him concerned gazes (in Acxa’s case), nobody mentioned it. Fortunately, it didn't take long before they got to their destination - they were late enough because of Keith. Exploring the new base and meeting their engineers and instructors turned out to be an adventure for each child, whereas work started for both caretakers with explanations, introductions and keeping all of them in line at the same time. Naturally, they took a couple of breaks - their tiny legs could only carry them for so far and lunch was the longest one.

By then, Keith was absolutely dead on his feet and actually fell asleep in his chair after his hearty lunch. Whatever bug he had caught, had him in a tight grasp and he didn't like it one bit. It wasn’t even his initial intention to nap in the loud dining hall, but apparently, his body had decided differently. There wasn’t much he could do about the exhaustion that drained him anyway. While he was usually always alert - a habit he had never been able to abandon - he didn't notice a certain four-deca-phoeb-old watching him with hawk-eyes this time. Yuuki hadn't forgotten how sick her favourite father figure had looked this morning. She could sense something was up, so she did the only thing she could think of doing right now: she climbed into his lap, snuggled into his chest and had a tight grasp on his red sweater. It was time for a nap anyway and if it kept Keith in his place, then that’s even better.


	3. Reunited

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Time to get some more people on screen!
> 
> Kinda forgot to upload the latest chapters, so another update will follow this one!
> 
> I'm having so much fun writing this thing :)

**Chapter 3: Reunited**

In the meantime, Lance McClain and his best buddy, Hunk Garett, entered the cafeteria, both caught up in catching up. It was ironic that both of them got a position in the new base with Lance working as a flight instructor, while Hunk had opened up a restaurant on campus with his girlfriend, Shay. A nice, cosy place for youngsters and soldiers alike, no matter which species they belong to - just what one would expect from the former Yellow Paladin. Rebuilding an entire civilization had been a tough job, that goes without saying, but with the combination of Altean and Galran technology and the natural connection of the Balmera, it had all worked out over time. The Holts had a major part in developing new technology and brought a new engineering process humankind hadn't seen before. And they never stopped. Meaning every one of them had been busy with different projects ever since they brought peace to the universe. Therefore, there was a lot they had to talk about.

Lance, who was currently eagerly chatting about everything that had been going on in his life, stopped in his speech mid-sentence, only for him to suddenly start _screeching._ Hunk startled when his best friend grabbed his arm in addition, but before he could ask _what the quiznak was going on now_ _and who was attacking_ , Lance pointed his finger in one particular direction and exclaimed, "Oh my god, do you see, what I see?! THEY ARE ADORABLE! This can't be the Mullet I know!"

Hunk's eyes followed Lance's arm and he immediately understood his buddy's excitement. In a quiet corner of the cafeteria was their old leader peacefully dozing in the sun with Yuuki Shirogane nestled into his chest. His long hair was tied into a lazy bun, with countless strands falling out of the ponytail and into his face. It was obvious, it was done in a hurry. Keith had his arms wrapped around the little girl's back, subconsciously securing her in that position. His head was leaning against the warm window and he seemed to be completely at peace. The whole scene was so domestic it seemed almost unreal.

"Isn't that Shiro's kid? I didn't know those two were _that_ close," Hunk mentioned, while he kept his gaze trained on the two in question. Lance and Hunk decided to approach, not only because it had been a while since they had seen Keith but also because _both_ were curious about the relationship of him and Shiro's daughter. They actually were only aware about Shiro adopting his niece after her parents' death and that Pidge's family had helped whenever the inexperienced father found himself at his wits end. Therefore, seeing _Keith_ of all people being so close to said child was certainly curious.

"Yeah, Shiro had sent a bunch of photos to the group, so I can say for sure that this is his Yuuki. She seems to be quite fond of Mullet," Lance replied.

"You do know that this nickname isn't fitting anymore, do you?"

"Hush you. He will always be Mullet to me. Just because he has ridiculously pretty, long ass hair now, doesn't change _anything_."

With a raised brow, Hunk muttered, "Dude, your crush is showing. Don't even try to deny it because I can see you blushing! Wanna go say hi now or are you gonna complain slash fawn over his, and I quote you, ' _pretty face'_ some more?"

Lance spluttered at that, horrified as to what his best friend just now _implied_ , although his crimson cheeks didn't do anything to deny it either. It was indeed a fact that Keith looked nice with his hair almost reaching his lower back, especially since he usually kept it in a braid, something the children in his kindergarten seemed to _adore._ Not to mention that it was true that Lance harboured romantic feelings for his long-time rival. Feelings which started as a tiny crush at the Galaxy Garrison, feelings he tried to bury once they got involved in a war, feelings that never faded away, even after all these deca-phoebs. They had gone through so many hardships together, situations which deepened the bond they shared, especially during the time when Shiro disappeared on Keith for the second time. Back then, Lance had realized just what kind of special bond was woven between their, at the time, missing leader and his successor, causing him to drop his own feelings to help Keith overcome his despair and grief before they lost him as well. For the first time since coming to space, Keith had shown his true self to his _rival -_ a person so stricken with insecurities and abandonment issues - nothing the usual tough and wary guy displayed. Seeing him at his lowest had helped them grow closer.  
Something that came entirely natural for Lance, since he had grown up in a large family where it was absolutely normal to care about others. Not to mention that he had learned to deal with depression due to one of his brothers. Thus, against Keith's expectations, he had been nothing but supportive. The right-hand-man Keith needed and deserved as a Paladin and as a friend in such dark times. Lance had an inkling that something _more_ was between Shiro and Keith, so he had only little hope that his feelings would ever be reciprocated.

Unaware of the playful banter and Lance's inner turmoil, Yuuki chose exactly that moment to wake up from her little nap. She pushed her tiny body up and wrinkled her nose, confused about her whereabouts and why her movement was limited for a moment. As soon as she realized on whom she was sitting, the little one couldn't help but smile brightly at the affected person. Yuuki ignored everything and everyone around them, as she was completely focused on Keith's peaceful expression. After another moment of contemplation, the little one wiggled out of his iron grip and started climbing up on him. High enough for her to be literally face to face with Keith. The ravenette himself woke up from the movement on top of him, yet his eyes remained closed, too curious about what she was suddenly getting herself into. He wasn't sure what to expect and he wasn't the only adult who watched with bated breath. Even if he wasn't truly _watching_ instead rather _feeling_ the situation unfold. A feather-light touch of those familiar grabby hands on his cheeks was the first thing he noted. A gesture that wasn't too surprising because Yuuki had the habit of touching her loved ones and staring straight at them. What Keith didn't expect, though, was a sudden wet sensation - a pair of clumsy lips on his left cheek. Right where his most visible scar was. The one he had gotten from Shiro's clone. What finally snapped him out of his daze, however, were the words directed straight at him right afterwards.

"Love ya lots, papa. Please feel better! You always kiss the hurt away, so I did, too!"

At this, Keith's eyes fluttered open and he could only stare wide-eyed at the cute child on his lap. He found himself entirely unable to form a proper reply, too overwhelmed by a sudden influx of emotions. It was as if something inside his chest burst and he couldn't stop the tears that collected in his eyes. Yuuki, on the other hand, was incredibly confused at seeing her _papa_ full out sobbing now. Why was he sad? She didn't do anything bad, did she? Her dad had done the same thing and papa hadn't cried then, so what was different now? While she pondered about what was going on, she didn't see the hug coming, in which Keith wrapped her after a couple of ticks. However, Yuuki wasn't the only one caught off guard by his reaction. Hunk and Lance stared with their mouths hanging open at the scene in front of them. Not only hadn't they seen their stoic fellow Paladin openly expressing any feelings _ever_ (minus Lance) _,_ but they also hadn't expected him to even react that strongly. It was obvious this little title held a deep meaning for Keith because it wasn't anything, he ever thought he would be addressed as. By Shiro's adoptive daughter, nonetheless. While nuzzling Yuuki and peppering her face with kisses, he couldn't contain the laughter bubbling up inside him, which ultimately had her giggling as well.

Shrieking, she tried to get out of his hug and yelped, "Papa, no! It tickles!"

Now even Lance found himself getting teary-eyed at this sweet and private exchange. Hunk, on the other hand, had already lost his own fight and kept wiping tears away with his sleeve. Listening to them gave them their answer to the question of how those two were related without even asking. Though, now they weren't sure if they should even interrupt Keith and Yuuki, seeing how they were trapped in their own little world right now, oblivious to all the smiling people around them. After all, it wasn't an unknown fact that Keith had struggled through large parts of his life with depressive episodes due to his upbringing throughout several abusive foster families. Thus, earning his trust _and_ affection had been a real task at first. But now, seeing him acting so _in love_ with most likely his _own_ adoptive daughter, was enough to warm even the toughest soldier by heart.

Despite how shitty Keith felt altogether, he was beyond delighted right now. His heart was hammering with excitement - a happiness that was definitely contagious because Yuuki (and unaware to Keith also Hunk and Lance) were grinning just as brightly. Now if only Shiro would have been there to witness this sweet, important moment... In a way, it was another milestone on their journey with Yuuki. Like her first steps, the first words she spoke and the first time she let Shiro and Keith cuddle her. Although, Keith hadn't been present to witness the first-mentioned. In the end, a little cough brought Keith back to earth. Upon realizing what he had done _in public_ mere ticks ago, his whole body flushed bright red in embarrassment. Suddenly, feeling rather shy, he greeted his two best friends with a timid smile and a stutter that didn't fit such a fearless warrior.

"Uh, hey guys. Didn't expect to see you here today!"

At that, Lance wrinkled his nose and complained, "Dude, we _told_ you we'd be here because we're going to _work_ here from now on! Did you even listen to what I told you two movements ago?"

At his perplexed expression, Yuuki giggled in his lap and exclaimed, fully exposing Keith to them, "Papa is forgetful! He even forgot about the trip today and fell out of the bed!"

Upon hearing that, Hunk touched Keith's forehead in worry, checking his temperature, and fretted, "Dude, are you okay? That's really not like you at all. I mean, it's not my place to judge, but you even fell asleep in the cafeteria and you do look paler than usual."

Keith tried to shrug it off as simple exhaustion, seeing how it was a thing he _had_ been experiencing for a while now. His friends didn't seem to be convinced, but got no possibility to question him any further, because the bell rung, signalling lunch was over. Which also meant Keith and Acxa had to go back to work to finish their guided tour around the new base. His explanation, however, fell on deaf ears. Because Hunk apparently didn’t have to get back to the restaurant for quite some time and Lance _did_ work at headquarters, so there was no way of getting rid of him.

Lance, who somehow couldn’t shrug off this sense of foreboding (and _might_ have wanted to keep an eye on his obviously unwell crush), wrapped his arms around Keith’s shoulders and exclaimed, “You’re not getting rid of me so easily, Samurai! As I, the great Lance, am free for the remainder of the qintant, I shall accompany you and bless you with my presence.” Then he directed his attention to the little girl on Keith’s lap. “What does this cute little princess say about listening to the adventures of the handsome Red Paladin of Voltron?”

And Yuuki, reacting like every child would under such circumstances, replied with sparkling eyes and an excited nod of her head. She even allowed him to pick her up! Which honestly baffled Keith, because he _knew from experience_ that she didn’t make friends easily, let alone trust a random stranger. The same realization had him pout, because it was _just so unfair_ how fast Lance McClain had her wrapped around his finger! Sometimes it took him forever to get her hyped up because of her shy nature, for god‘s sake! Well, Lance’s bubbly personality might have been a great factor, and it was obvious how good he was with children, but still! Stupid, annoyingly cute Lance! To make matters even worse (for Keith at least), the Red Paladin snaked one of his arms around Keith’s waist, effectively keeping him in place. It had the ravenette turn crimson all over again. Albeit, he didn’t try to slip out of his grasp - somehow, he was getting dizzy for the nth time that qintant and the touch of Lance was apparently keeping him steady. Weird.

Nobody asked questions, when Lance accompanied the visiting group, seeing how he was one of the new flight instructors after all. The brunet easily caught the attention of the children with tales of his adventures as a Paladin, while he also explained a few things about his new job. Throughout the entire tour, he kept his one arm around Keith’s waist. If he did it because he was worried about Keith's state of health, he didn't utter a word about it. Yet, the fact that the former Black Paladin silently went along with it, did bother Lance - his side-glances were obvious enough for Acxa _and_ Yuuki to notice. The ravenette himself held onto Yuuki's hand the whole time but kept his eyes on the children and let Acxa and his right-hand-man do all the talking. After what felt like an eternity, they finished their tour on top of the base with a scenic view over the beautiful landscape surrounding the complex. Next to the headquarters was a large, deep artificial lake, surrounded by lush greenery and an area for the people to relax and cool off after stressful qintants at school or work. Since it was a warm and sunny qintant with no cloud in sight, the view was even more stunning, having children and adults in awe. Keith let go of his daughter's hand, not wanting her to get too close to the edge of the roof, while he took in the view himself. Personally, he was glad the qintant was about to be over: every muscle of his body was sore, he was beyond tired and he truly wanted nothing more than to bury himself underneath his blankets for the rest of the qintant.

Despite his unease, he couldn’t help the smile that flitted across his lips as memories of his old Garrison days came back when he gazed at the scenery. Memories of when he first met his mentor, his friend and now boyfriend, and the many times they spent on the roof and in the desert back then. If someone had told him he would end up with _the_ Takashi Shirogane _and_ a child, he would have laughed in their faces. And yet, here he was, a completely different person than the boy he had been all those deca-phoebs ago, with a family he swore to protect with anything he had. His beloved space family was naturally included in that. The feeling of nostalgia filled him with warmth and a fuzzy feeling spread in his chest. His happiness didn't last for long, however. Without warning, Keith was overcome with intense lightheadedness, worse than it had been in the morning. Or the past couple of movements since Shiro’s departure for that matter. Black dots seemingly danced across his vision as he battled with himself to stay upright, to stay awake. A losing battle, he realized. What was going on with him?


	4. A little miracle

Nobody was aware of the inner battle Keith was fighting, nobody but a tough little warrior only a couple of feet away. Yuuki scrutinized her papa and his unsteady posture with squinted eyes. Something _was_ so very wrong. Keith never wobbled or swayed because he was _the_ _toughest hero ever,_ so she waddled over to him, carefully taking a fist full of his black jeans. Much to her chagrin, he didn't seem to notice her at all, despite all the tugging and muttering of his name. It was as if he was looking at her, but at the same time wasn't _seeing her_ at all. It worried the little one quite a bit. Because of that, she let go of her papa and decided to look for help elsewhere. While her eyes wandered from person to person, she remembered that Keith had spoken many times of a certain Blue, later Red and Yellow Paladin. Now she didn't really know who these people were, but this Lance seemed to know these two pretty well, taking all the stories into account he had spread when they were exploring the halls after lunch. But right when she reached Lance and got a hold of his jacket, a mighty roar startled everyone out of their mind. Only Yuuki didn't flinch away, because somehow, she could _feel_ the source of the sound had good intentions. Or didn’t mean harm.

Lance was the first person who recovered from the initial shock, recognizing it was undeniably Red who had roared. Now, he wasn't sure why the lioness did, but through their bond, he could feel immense distress. Okay, she was worried, but what was the occasion? Right then, he heard a panicked little voice at his feet, screaming "Papa!" with such fear in her voice, he immediately looked down to see it was Shiro's kid. Her eyes were opened wide, a little hand covered her mouth and she was definitely _shaking._ Worried, he followed her line of view, right in time to see his former leader toppling over. Straight over the _quiznaking railing._ For a few ticks, everyone fixated on the spot Keith had been standing in, before a _splash_ had everyone startle out of the first shock. Without giving it a second thought, Lance pushed the little girl right in Hunk's direction, before he took off running. With the momentum he had, he catapulted himself over the railings, going right after his comrade. Luckily, he knew that this rooftop was used by younger cadets for stupid tests of courage (against official orders) - one of them being jumping from the roof into the waters below, since it was deep enough to not kill anyone instantly. The tick Lance landed in the lake; he dove down, frantically looking for Keith. Fortunately, he spotted him rather quickly. The ravenette was obviously unconscious and was gradually sinking deeper - if it was from the impact or from fainting beforehand, Lance had no chance of knowing.

Exactly that missing knowledge was enough for him to hurry up. Luckily, with Lance being the guardian of water _and_ being a great swimmer, he reached his friend quickly and pulled him towards the surface. Both of his lions - Blue and Red - filled the back of his mind, clearly worried about the situation at hand. Especially Red was desperate, ready to break free from the Atlas to rescue her cub, but she also knew it wasn't a good idea. Only the knowledge that her second pilot was rescuing him, as well as the presence of the other lionesses could calm her enough to not break free. Lance could feel her dread and couldn't really blame her. It was a shocking incident and she was definitely not the only one to freak out about it. The only thing stopping _him_ from panicking was probably the adrenaline of his instinctive rescue-mission. His own strength allowed him to reach Keith in record time, although pulling him up turned out to be slightly more difficult. As soon as both broke through the surface, Lance took a deep breath and started swimming to the closest shore, carefully hauling the unconscious kindergartner along. Fortunately, it took only a couple of doboshes for them to get back.

Once he pulled Keith out of the water, he immediately went to check his pulse and breathing. A curse left the Cuban's mouth when he found none of it, forcing him to start CPR. God, was he glad for all of his first-aid-training Shiro and Allura had insisted on! Over the course of those five deca-phoebs of war, they had gotten alarmingly skilled at it.

While he was working on that, he uttered grimly, "That's not how I expected our first kiss to go, but you're leaving me no choice here, Samurai. Who's cradling whom in their arms now, huh?"

With that, he pressed his mouth against Keith's surprisingly soft lips, supplying him with some much-needed oxygen. He repeated the procedure every 30 compressions until the ravenette was finally stabilized. In fact, Keith jerked awake, spitting out some water before he slumped back down only barely making out who was sitting beside him. Lance was so beside himself with worry, now that the adrenaline finally wore off, that he didn't notice the ambulance arriving, as well as Hunk, Yuuki and some other witnesses. Only when Hunk put a towel around his shaking shoulders did he look up.

"Keith was unconscious when I pulled him out of the lake, already had been when I saw him floating away. Heart had stopped as well as his breathing, performed CPR," was all Lance could tell the paramedics in broken sentences.

It was enough for them to continue aiding to him. The Red Paladin was well aware that the whole situation while being a shock to him, must be way worse for the girl who considered Keith her father. Especially because he knew how Yuuki got to Shiro, and apparently Keith, in the first place. Since he noticed her gaze falling onto him and Keith, Lance opened his arms wide in invitation. She reacted almost instantly when she ran into his chest, full out sobbing as soon as she was enclosed in a hug. The mere sight was heart-breaking for every surrounding person, Lance included, seeing how he was a sympathetic-crier _and_ affected by the whole thing on a personal level. Therefore, not a single soul questioned it when those two were let into the ambulance.

The vargas afterwards were tough on both of them, especially because Yuuki had no other family, with Shiro on a mission and Keith in intensive care. Somehow, the little girl found comfort in Lance's presence as she wouldn't stop snuggling the brunet male for the whole time, they spent waiting for updates on their beloved one. In the meantime, Hunk had stopped by to drop off some fresh clothes for both of his friends and some freshly prepared snacks. While it didn't make the wait easier, it did distract at least the child for a bit. After what felt like an eternity, a doctor finally approached them.

"Good afternoon. Are you related to Keith Kogane?"

At hearing _his_ name, Yuuki immediately looked up and pretty much confirmed the question with one enthusiastic shout of "Papa!"

The Half-Galran doctor, a middle-aged woman with warm red eyes, lavender skin, a little scar on the left side of her lips and dark brown locks knelt down before the little girl on Lance's lap and offered her a soft smile.

"Hey little one! Do you want to visit your papa? He is a little sleepy right now, but I'm sure he'd like to see you."

Yuuki nodded at that and crawled out of the lap she was sitting on. Without hesitation, she grabbed Lance's hand and waited for the doctor to go ahead. Lance was surprised that Yuuki was so straightforward with him when she seemed to stay in the back the whole time, they explored the base.  
 _What a curious girl. At least she stopped crying. Maybe she trusts me because I saved Keith?  
_ At the thought of his weakened crush, a frown crossed his face, but he kept quiet anyway. It wouldn't be wise to set off the poor child again, especially because it couldn't be ruled out that something was seriously wrong with Keith. After all, he did faint, fell off the roof because of that _and_ had to be reanimated after nearly drowning as a result of the events mentioned. Oh dear, now Lance was just making himself anxious! Great.

When the three entered Keith's room, a tired looking ravenette raised his head, slowly blinking into consciousness. The sight Keith provided tore at Lance's heartstrings, causing him to stop in the doorway. Keith was so, so pale, wired up to a heart monitor and an IV was inserted in his right arm. Seeing him so weak, hurt Lance on a personal level, because this was nothing like the Keith he knew. Once he shook his head to get his bearings, Lance moved to sit next to the hospital bed, where Yuuki had already climbed onto.

With a tired smile, Keith greeted the brunet quietly, "Hey Sharpshooter. I heard ya saved me again today. Thanks, man."

Without giving it a second thought, Lance took the other's hand and complained, "You really gave me a scare, dude! No, forget that, _everyone_ who saw that freaked out! Never do that again, you hear me?!"

Keith let his gaze fall down to the hand holding onto his, momentarily distracted, but decided to make no comment about it. The gesture was more intimate than the ravenette wanted to admit, especially because the brunet started running his thumb in circles over the back of Keith’s hand. Not to mention it was a rather unexpected move. Though, on the other hand, it was Lance, Keith was thinking about now... Lance was a touchy-feely person, after all. That was something Keith had learned throughout their adventures in space: from high-fives, to half-hugs and the way he used to cling to people whenever he got the possibility. More often than not, it had been Keith, who found himself on the receiving end of those gestures. If there were paladin sleepovers that involved some cuddling between the self-pronounced rivals - _because Lance just did that in his sleep_ \- then Keith would _always_ deny it had happened. Much like a certain bonding-moment Lance swore he couldn't remember!

Hoping to lighten the mood, Keith joked, “Did I get _the_ Lance McClain to drop his sassy attitude? Must have been quite the shock for everyone present, huh?” With one glance at the scowl Lance gave him, Keith lowered his gaze and whispered, softer than Lance had ever heard him speak, “No, but seriously. Thank you. For saving me. For being there for Yuuki. For just… everything, I guess. I never truly thanked you for having my back, back at the castle. There is no telling where I would be if you hadn't been there for me. I mean it. I'm glad we met, Lance.”

These words brought a smile to the brunet's face and he gave Keith's hand a light squeeze. A gesture Keith responded to with intertwining their fingers, much to the surprise of Lance. What was the meaning of it? Was his crush not as unrequited as he thought it was? It was honestly too good to be true if Lance was honest with himself. Since Keith was already dating his former leader - which was blatantly obvious now - Lance had no clue as to how he should think about it. Come on, Yuuki, Shiro's daughter, was calling the ravenette _papa_. What else was this supposed to mean? For now, however, it didn't matter because they were here, together, and apparently Keith didn't seem to _not_ want the brunet at his side.

While those two were busy staring into each other's eyes, a cough from behind them was what pulled them out of their private bubble. Heat rose to their cheeks and they moved somewhat apart, only now realizing how little distance was left between them. The doctor didn't seem to mind much - she was even smiling at them!

"I don't mean to intrude in on your reunion, so I'm going to make it short, alright? I am doctor Ithrid and I am in charge of you, Keith. I have to say, you have been really lucky. Despite all the odds, especially the height you fell from, you walked away without injuries from the fall. Due to the immediate aid your partner provided, consequences from almost drowning could have been prevented. Nonetheless, we want to keep you here for at least 72 vargas to monitor your vitals to be sure there aren't any consequences later on."

Lance and Keith sighed in relief at the news. That was one less worry at least. Even Yuuki, who didn't understand the big words the doctor used, realized her papa had to be okay, if she took the big smiles from everyone around her into consideration. Satisfied by that thought, Yuuki decided to lie down for a bit at the end of the bed (where she had the most space, currently) - a nap sounded rather nice and all the waiting had made her terribly tired, after all. One question did remain, though. A question which was ultimately voiced by Keith himself. "I mean, that's good and all, but… Why did all of this happen?"

With an almost motherly tone of voice, the Galran woman countered his question with another question, "Could you tell me more about the symptoms you have experienced and since when they occurred?"

"Hm… Now that I think about it, I had been exhausted for the last couple of movements. More than usual and I didn't even get to exercise that much with how busy I was, but I shrugged it off, thinking it was because of stress. Because my mate has been on a mission for a couple of movements now? Sometimes I suffered from sudden bouts of dizziness and sickness. And I broke down once or twice, mentally I mean, but that's nothing new. Is… Is it something bad?"

A sharp intake of breath was heard from his side, and it was obvious Lance was holding back his own comment on that topic. Keith knew all too well, what bothered his friend, but asking for help was still something a little foreign to him. No matter how much he matured in the time he served for the Blade's. Keith simply didn't want to burden anyone with his own problems and that was a habit he never could break completely. Much to the dismay of those he considered family by now, but at least he wasn't solely relying on himself anymore. Doctor Ithrid didn't notice the slight tension lingering in the air after this confession and quietly wrote down on her tablet what the ravenette had told her. Instead, she opted to enlighten them with what she found out.

"No need to worry, Paladin. It's entirely natural what you experienced, although the results weren't what we had suspected at all. Do you want your mate and kit to stay when I show you the results?"

Feeling embarrassed at her wording for some reason, heat rushed to his face and he couldn't help but avert his eyes from the questioning gaze of Lance. Although that didn't mean that he let go of the brunet's hand. It provided him with a sense of safety - something he needed at the moment. After Keith gave a single nod as an answer, the doctor grabbed a special type of scanner from a nearby station. While setting up the projector that goes with the scanner, she explained, "At first, we were at a loss as to what caused your loss of consciousness, because your body showed no signs of illness - neither a human disease, nor an intergalactic one - so we had to search for another cause. That's when an entirely different factor came to my mind, call it a hunch if you'd like." Ithrid paused her speech for a tick to prepare Keith for her examination by moving a part of his hospital gown to expose his stomach. A process that scared Keith and worried Lance, even if neither of them would admit it out loud. Subconsciously, Lance settled down closer to Keith on the bed and put one arm around his shoulders while he pulled their intertwined hands closer to his own chest. It was a heartwarming and intimate gesture, proving the doctor once more that their souls were truly intertwined.

Once her equipment was ready, she produced a picture of Keith's abdomen and declared with the same, warm smile from earlier, “The reason for all the symptoms you suffered from, is that you are carrying a child Keith. You're nine movements along currently, which explains the symptoms you described. Congratulation! Here, let me show you the images the scanner projects.”

Following her statement, Ithrid began showing them the ultrasound pictures, twisting and turning the scanner to assist her explanations as to what was visible. Keith was completely in awe and hung onto her every word with shining eyes. Lance was honestly a little lost, but the joy his crush was emitting brought a large grin to his face as well. Alien biology was a confusing thing, but over the past few deca-phoebs, Lance came to accept a lot of things, he would never believe were normal or even existing. Fifteen doboshes later, after receiving some health care tips for the future and further information about the following phoebs, the three were left alone again. Fifteen doboshes which involved crying on Keith's part and awkward attempts of Lance to calm the emotional male. Throughout the entire time, the ravenette stayed in Lance's arms, not giving two shits about how clingy he was acting now. With a sniffle, Keith whispered, still in disbelief, “I’m pregnant... There is life growing inside of me! Oh my god!”

He didn’t address anyone with his little statement, the ravenette was simply trying to wrap his hand around this significant idea. Keith let his hand wander down to his still flat stomach. Never in his life had he expected to receive such news. Hell, he would have expected some deadly space virus first before he even remembered the possibility to be expecting! And yet, here he was, laying in a hospital bed, trying to absorb just that piece of information. Lance, even Yuuki were all forgotten, for this was a moment, Keith had just for himself. Thus, for a moment, they relished in the silence that followed the intense experience.

Once they calmed enough to have a proper discussion, Lance spoke up, "Soo… Galra males are able to carry children? Did you know about that, well, rather important fact?"

Much to the brunet's surprise, Keith nodded and explained, "Krolia and Kolivan had an awfully embarrassing talk with me about these things, after a fellow Blade returned from a long-term mission with child. And no, I don't plan on repeating any of it. I didn't think it would apply to a Half-Galra like me - not that I bothered to pay it much mind in the first place." One look at Lance's mischievous expression had Keith spill a thread in addition, "If you tell _anyone_ that I cried, I _will_ hunt you down and no one will be able to recognize that pretty face of yours, McClain."

Since Lance had gotten used to Keith's violent outbursts, it didn't bother him anymore. He knew by now that flustered Keith simply didn't know how to handle such situations. Or praise and compliments for that matter. That was something that had worried Lance and the other paladins at first, since they didn't like at all what it implied. Shiro's limited information about Keith's upbringing had somewhat explained his social awkwardness and his distrust, but getting Keith to open up and trust them had been a long process. Once Lance had managed to tear this wall of his down, he made it his job to fluster Keith. Only because Lance thought Keith was outright adorable whenever he blushed.

Just like right now.

"Oh, so you think I'm pretty? Aw, thank you, but I think you're the ridiculously beautiful one between us!" Lance started, smirking when Keith did blush at his compliment. He added, before Keith could complain, with a more sincere expression, "But seriously: I'm happy for you. And Shiro, I presume? It's a nice change to see you so happy and expressive. It really does suit you. Your giggly laughs and little smiles are really cute... Even if you sobbed grossly into my shoulder, Mullet."

Lance caught himself reddening as this genuine bit slipped past his lips, which was pretty much the only reason for him to add this last fake-complain. He couldn't fool Keith, however. Keith, who was already overly emotional today.  
 _Does he really mean it?  
_ As blunt as always, Keith questioned him curiously, "Do you like me, Lance? Or am I reading this wrong? You know I'm not great at social cues and stuff..."

At seeing Keith's honest, confused and slightly nervous expression, the brunet decided to throw all caution to the winds and gathered his courage. After taking a deep, shuddering breath, said brunet stared directly into Keith's stupidly gorgeous violet eyes and confessed softly, "Yes, I like you, Keith. Very much. I have for quite a while to be honest. Since the Garrison where I started that stupid rivalry to get closer to you. I know you and Shiro are together and probably had been when we were still at war, so I don't want to drive a wedge between you and him, but I at least want you to know. It's okay if you don't feel that way about me. After all, you've got Yuuki, another baby on the way and..."

Due to his nerves, Lance started rambling, not realizing how Keith's startled expression slowly softened. He even tried to get in a couple of words but was stopped each time by the oblivious brunet. In the end, when Keith was finally fed up, he chose to interrupt his speech by force. The ravenette grabbed onto Lance's hood, pulled him closer and pressed his lips firmly against Lance's. Keith squeezed his eyes shut and focused solely on the sensation of those soft lips against his own. Of how in sync they moved against each other. Of how right it felt to Keith. Lance didn't respond immediately out of shock, but when he did, he wrapped his arms around the other's upper body, supporting him, while one of his hands carded through those long, black locks. For a moment, everything was as perfect as it could possibly be. Besides the few ticks they moved apart to catch their breath, they didn't stay separated for long. And despite so many deca-phoebs of pining, so many deca-phoebs full of longing, their kisses weren't as desperate and passionate as one would expect. Quite the opposite to be exact. The lovestruck duo exchanged countless featherlight kisses and Keith could feel Lance smile into each kiss. When they finally moved apart, Keith cradled the brunet's face in his hands, a shy smile on his face as he whispered, "Does this count as an answer?"

Lance nodded with a noticeable blush on his face and bopped their noses together, before he sat up a little straighter on the bed. His happy expression didn't last for long, as another thought crossed his mind. A thought he couldn't possibly stay quiet about. "But what about Shiro? I - I can't just steal you away from him! He is one of my best friends too, after all!"

Keith understood where he was coming from, his worries and all, but he didn't really see a problem. On the other hand, he possessed knowledge the brunet didn't. With a raised brow, Keith questioned him in his usual deadpan voice, "You do know that there can be more than just two persons in a relationship, right? Even _I_ know about polyamorous relationships! To be honest, Shiro and I had talked about that stuff because he knew of my feelings for you. And him, obviously. And he wasn't opposed to it."

_That_ threw Lance into a loop for sure. Gaping at Keith as if he had grown a second head, the brunet began questioning if he had heard right. _Both_ Shiro and Keith wanted him to join their relationship? His hero _and_ his long-time crush? Too good to be true! For a short while, Lance kept staring at him, too baffled to give a proper reply. He only snapped out of his daze, when Keith began avoiding his gaze and started fidgeting. Before Lance got to reply, the other muttered, "You don't have to, if you're really that much against it. Sorry I offered something as weird as this..."

At seeing the rejected look on Keith's face and the (admittedly) cute pout gracing his lips, Lance immediately felt bad. But when tears gathered in the corners of those violet eyes, Lance all but jumped into action, almost panicky, wrapping his arms around his beloved Keith. He hadn't meant to hurt his feelings!

"God, Keith! I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to make you cry, goddammit! Please, please don't be sad! I love you and I'd be super happy to be with you! I swear, I was just surprised you would be okay with something like this. Both of you too!" Lance exclaimed, incredibly guilty about causing these tears.

The ravenette buried his face in the crook of Lance's neck and had an iron grip on said male's signature jacket, while he sniffled miserably. It took a moment before Keith stopped whimpering, but when he did, he cursed softly, “Quiznaking hormones...”

That unexpected response did not only explain _so many things,_ but also caused Lance to laugh out loud, whereas Keith only blushed in embarrassment. At the same time, it also awoke someone who had been momentarily forgotten.

“Papa? You okay?”

Both males startled at the sudden call and stared at the sleepy child. Apparently, the little girl had fallen asleep earlier, considering how she rubbed her eyes with her tiny hands and yawned a little. It was understandable after such a long, eventful qintant and the emergency she had to witness. Noticing red rimmed eyes and tracks of tears on the one she considered one of her fathers definitely added stress to her poor mind. Which is why both males tried to reassure her that Keith was perfectly fine for now. Of course, they didn't tell her anything about the upcoming change of their family dynamics _or_ the baby. These things needed to be addressed at the right time and with the right setting. Thus, they ended the qintant with cuddles, whereas Lance excused himself to get them some light food for them to enjoy together. Yuuki was allowed to occupy the bed next to Keith - her other family was absent after all, so she had nowhere else to go. Lance even read her a bedtime story, wanting to score Brownie points with her. They were _bonding_.  
All the while, Keith watched over them with a fond smile dancing around his lips. For a while, the ravenette fought against the growing fatigue, but the more he listened to Lance's smooth voice as he impersonated whoever was acting in the story, the harder it got for him to keep his eyes open. It didn't help at all, that his voice got softer and quieter with time. In the end, Keith lost this fight and drifted off to dreamland.

Noticing that, Lance found himself smiling as well. He pressed a tender kiss to Keith's forehead and a second one to his lips before he whispered, "Dulces sueños, querido. Te amo, mi amor de vida." ( **Sweet dreams, darling. I Love you, love of my life.** )

Lance left the hospital, unaware of the watchful eyes of a certain four-deca-phoeb-old girl.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gotta be honest: I couldn't decide whether I wanted a Klance fic or a Sheith fic.  
> So I killed two birds with one stone :D
> 
> Keith's going to cry a lot, just a warning^^


	5. Screaming instincts

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It has been ages since I last updated anything... Between simply forgetting to do it and then being too busy for pretty much any hobby, I kinda neglected this thing.  
> I still love writing it and I've got a bunch ready, so I'm trying to keep a weekly schedule from now on.  
> Please tell me, if I fucked up something (kinda added the middle part like four months after writing the first draft, because rereading made me think that something was missing...)

Passing the time in the hospital turned out to be a rather tedious task. There was simply nothing Keith was allowed to do, especially because of the insistince of doctors and his _mate_ that he was supposed to rest. All of that to watch out for any aftereffects the incident might have caused. Fortunately, he wasn’t left alone in his suffering: Yuuki was excused from kindergarten without problems - Keith owned it, after all - so she spent the qintants with him in the hospital room. Lance used to stop by whenever he was done teaching his classes as well. Apparently, those visits highlighted Yuuki’s otherwise boring qintants immensely, seeing how her eyes always lit up when the brunet showed up. At first, Lance had been worried he might play _too much_ with her - he didn’t want Keith to feel neglected _or_ take time away he wanted to spend with her, after all. But once he caught the soft and dreamy expression Keith wore when he watched the two of them play, those worries had been forgotten in an instant. With Lance taking care of the little one, Keith was given more opportunities to take naps, and sleep was one of the things he needed the most to recover. No matter how often he grumbled about not needing to sleep all day, it usually never took more than a couple of minutes after a long play session with his precious daughter, before he gave in to his body’s pleas.

On his last qintant at the hospital, Keith and Yuuki got some more unexpected guests: At the door to his room stood Hunk, Lance and the Holt siblings, each of them with some sort of gift bag in their hands.

The person to speak up first, was Pidge Holt, the tech genius of Voltron.

“Hey Keith. Sorry that it took until the qintant of your discharge before we could drop by. How are you holding up?”

“Yeah, man! You gave me a heart attack when I heard what had happened! Fuck, I _saw_ you falling from my classroom window! Didn’t realize it was you, though, until Hunk confirmed it,” Matt added in, as he threw himself nonchalantly on his hospital bed.

Before Keith got a chance to respond to their statements, Lance quipped in, “Yeah, one of my students told me that our meme lord here _did_ faint in the middle of a class! It must have been quite the spectacle, from what I’ve heard as well! A scene right out of a movie: his gaze moving from the window back to the class, only to wander right back over, all the while muttering he had to be so exhausted he must be seeing things. But when a commotion arose, he rushed over to the window, checking things out only for him to see a body hit the surface of the lake and all of this happened in slow motion.”

Apparently, his attempt of a joke went a little too far, seeing how not a single person was amused by it. The incident was simply way too recent for that. Even Keith looked at him as if he couldn’t believe what the other had just said - hell, the ravenette was fiercely scowling even! Therefore, Lance decided to join Matt and Keith on the bed, though he bent down to press a sweet kiss to his lips before he made himself comfortable. It didn’t remove the scowl from his face, but at least it softened the crease of his brow and brought a slight redness to his cheeks.

That gesture had everyone’s attention immediately. Pidge’s eyes wandered from Lance to Keith, calculating, thinking, whereas Matt stared in utter unbelief at the scene in front of him - well, next to him. Hunk was merely surprised, speechless for a moment, before a smile lit up his face. It was pretty obvious what kind of relationship had blossomed between the former rivals if someone were to ask the Samoan. While a kiss like that could as well be interpreted like a simple show of affection between friends, something between the two former rivals just told a different story. He couldn’t pinpoint what exactly had changed between them, it was just the whole, sweet vibe the two gave off. It felt more intimidate. Not to mention that the brunet lingered right behind Keith, with his hands on Keith’s arms and sides, gently caressing him as if it was nothing. He was just that nonchalant. In the end, the Yellow Paladin was to first to congratulate them.

“You guys are together now?! That’s awesome! But why didn’t you tell me, man? Since when are you dating, how did it happen and who confessed first? Give me all the details!”

Instead of giving an immediate answer, Lance enclosed his boyfriend in a hug from behind and placed another kiss this time on top of his head. Despite the heat that crawled up Keith’s face, he still leaned into the touch. It was a response out of instinct, one he listened to gladly. The movement itself was subtle, yet noticeable enough for the practiced defenders of the universe. In an unusually soft voice, Keith confessed, “I guess you could say that this accident brought us together. I don’t know if he _intended_ to confess that qintant, but he ended up doing it anyway. After the examination was over and we had time to mull it over, that is. Not as romantic as you might think it could have been, coming from Lance of all people, that much is sure. He was so awkward and nervous, while trying to be soft!”

“Oh, shut your quiznak! You loved it and you know it! Who is the one, who went for a kiss to interrupt me spilling my feelings! Feelings you reciprocated, by the way!” spluttered Lance, as a blush formed on his own cheeks now.

“Yeah. You were really cute. My adorable dork of a boyfriend.” To emphasize his statement, Keith snaked one arm around Lance’s hips and pulled him down by the collar with the other arm to connect their lips in a tender kiss. It was a gesture that caught his brunet boyfriend completely off guard, resulting in an unholy squeal leaving his mouth. That tiny, smug smirk on the ravenette’s lips afterwards, had everyone snickering at the brunet’s expanse, though. If he had known just how cute the raven-haired could be, he had confessed much earlier! Slowly but surely, Lance began to realize how affectionate his partner turned out to be despite his rather rough demanour. If someone had told him in his Garrison days, that the hot-headed dropout with disciplinary issues and violent streaks, would be his future soulmate who _adored_ cuddles and affection, he would have laughed straight in their faces. How easily this guy made him flustered was just not fair! Especially because he did it so naturally! The group of friends stayed out of their little debate and stuck to watching their cute exchange instead. It wasn’t until Matt spoke up again, that an entirely different question arose. An important one for that matter.

“So, if you too are dating, does Shiro know about this, Keith? Correct me if I’m wrong, but aren’t you two a thing since the final battle against Sendak? Wouldn’t that be like... Cheating? Not that I want to accuse you guys of anything, I’m merely curious.”

To be honest: it was an understandable concern. One that was to be expected. Keith and Lance knew that much as well, since polyamorous relationships weren’t as common as other types of relationships. However, before either of them could explain their situation, a different voice coming from the doorway caught their attention. It was none other than Yuuki Shirogane who offered an explanation as simple as one would expect from a pure four-deca-phoeb-old.

“I heard papa and Lancey talking when we visited papa after he fell! I didn’t understand all of the big words, but I know that papa and otousan love each other very much and they love Lancey all the same!”

The adults were all taking aback by her awareness of the nature of the relationship. For a child of only four deca-phoebs, it was actually pretty impressive. On the other hand... She _was_ a Shirogane, so maybe it simply ran in the family. A little embarrassed about the fact that his daughter had already caught on to the fact that their relationship wasn’t as platonic as they tried to play it off in front of her, Keith began to explain them what he had also told Lance before. Yeah, Shiro didn’t know of the newest developments yet, but since it’s also been only three qintants, three qintants in which Keith had been confined to bed, who could blame them? Luckily, the others understood that, so they changed the topic and updated each other about their lives, what they were doing lately and whatever came to mind. The only thing Keith and Lance kept to themselves was the truth of his uncommon condition - namely the pregnancy. A decision they made together, because this was too important to simply throw at their friends. There was a certain time and place for this discussion and this was not it. That much was obvious to the brunet. Also, Keith wanted to tell Shiro first - for what reason he wasn’t too sure, but it wouldn’t feel right any other way. Nevertheless, talking so casually with their friends was truly nice for a change. In the end, they stayed together until Keith got his discharge papers and was finally freed from the hospital.

—

The next two movements went by in the blink of an eye. Unfortunately, Shiro's mission had been extended, which meant Keith was still all alone in the house he shared with his beloved. At first, it had been completely fine with the father-and-daughter duo. That is, until Keith started to get antsy and uncomfortable in the silence of the usually cozy place. One evening, Yuuki was out of the house, staying over at a friend's place. The ravenette had been nervous about letting her stay elsewhere for the first time and it had taken quite the talking to from Shiro before Keith even considered letting her go for the weekend. God bless Katie for building those communicators for situations such as this one. Even a few doboshes into their discussion, Shiro couldn’t understand why his partner was so worried seeing how it was _just one weekend_ and not the end of the world or why the other was freaking out so much in the first place.

“Baby, calm down! Nothing is going to happen! Why don’t you take this time for yourself, go for a ride with your bike or visit the others? I’m sure some alone time will be good for you too,” the absent Captain tried to reason with his distressed lover.

“But you don’t understand Kashi! What if- what if she gets homesick or hurt? She’s never been away from home!”

After a moment of silence, Shiro figured, “This is not about Yuuki, is it? I know you. What is really happening? Are _you_ okay?”

Not willing to confess on a fucking phone call, Keith found himself fumbling for words, while simultaneously fighting against tears threating from spilling. Still, his sniffling didn’t go unnoticed. Agitated by heaven knows what, the ravenette fumed, “As if you would understand what I’m going through! I’m here all by myself in this big house, you’re going to be away for god knows how long and I’m starting to feel really weird...”

Concerned by Keith’s words on top of the apparent discomfort, Shiro urged him on softly, “What do you mean by that love?”

“I’m... It’s nothing. I’m feeling a bit under the weather, that’s all. And I- I miss you so much. I can’t help but feeling that something is missing with you not here.. I miss waking up next to you, stealing your warmth ‘n cuddling. You’re scent is also starting to fade in the house... It’s just not the same without you.”

For a moment, Shiro found himself unable to speak. Of course, he knew well enough that Keith had become more emotionally open, but to listen to his shaky voice, raw with emotion? God, just what he done to his beloved boyfriend? Back then, when Shiro had been assigned to this special mission, he hadn’t truly considered how Keith could be affected by his absence. It had been a long time, since Keith had suffered from a panic attack, but as it was, he seemed to be working himself right into one. Right now, Shiro had no way of knowing just why his lover was getting worse and worse in the span of a couple of doboshes. Considering that the ravenette hadn’t truly been himself the minute he had called initially, Shiro was left in quite the dilemma. On the other hand, he was also unaware of the life growing inside of his boyfriend, courtesy of Keith who wanted to tell him in person. And now, here Keith was, all alone in a too big apartment, about to lose his _quiznaking_ mind.

Since there wasn’t much the silver-haired male could do about the current situation, he tried his best to console his sniffling boyfriend.

It took almost a full varga before Keith calmed down enough to think clearly again. Whispers of love and promises of a soon and safe return, got the ravenette out of his desperate mindset for the time being – albeit it also left him quite embarrassed at the sudden mental breakdown he had in front of his beloved mate. In a way, Keith was well aware that his lover would never judge him for things like that. None of his friends turned family would. Fuck that, there was nobody who knew better than Shiro how terrifying those attacks could be! The silver-haired captain was way too familiar with panix attacks, having had his fair share of them due to his first imprisonment by the Galra! But it still unnerved him occasionally to be _so_ open towards others. Albeit that didn’t mean he wasn’t glad that Shiro had been able to help him overcome the attack. Could it have been avoided in the first place? That Keith wasn’t too sure about if he had to be honest. He blamed his messed up hormones for making him so vulnerable. Unfortunately, his breakdown had taken up all of the time the two of them had left for their call, and, as unwilling as Shiro was to leave the other alone like that, his duty left him no choice in that matter. Keith being his stubborn self, insisted on being fine for the reminder of the day, which, after _five_ promises of calling Lance if necessary, ended their conversation. Maybe he could truly need some time for himself, even if he was by himself.

From experience, the ravenette knew Galra were pack-oriented beings and being alone for too long wasn't healthy for them. Not only once had he needed help from the paladins or his pack within the Blade's because he had neglected his own needs. Ulaz, Thace, Antok and Kolivan had pretty much adopted him after they discovered his Galran heritage _and_ his age. After that, it had only been a matter of time before he gave in to his natural instincts. And those instincts were simply going haywire at the moment, most likely due to his pregnancy. From what he had witnessed, expecting Galra were highly protective over their unborn kits and weren't to be left alone for the sake of their mental health. Now he began to understand just why that was: His skin was itching; his nerves were rattled beyond belief and he couldn't stop pacing around the apartment. In short, he was a bundle of nerves, about to explode. There was the offer from Lance that Keith could join him and his family whenever he needed to, but Keith couldn't possibly burden him with that. Not in the middle of the night. At least he managed to tell that himself for three vargas straight before he fumbled to dial Lance's number with shaking hands.

Fortunately, he picked up after the first ring. Before Lance even managed to greet him, Keith stuttered out, "Lance, can I… Can I come over? I'm alone and I… It’s just too much! I don’t... I can’t deal with this right now! It feels like I'm losing my mind!"

Taken aback by the fact that _the_ _Keith Kogane_ sounded like he was ticks away from breaking into tears _again_ was alarming to Lance, especially considering the time he called, so he felt his protective instinct kicking in immediately. Without giving it much thought, he exclaimed, "Of course you can, mi amor! Why didn't you call me earlier? I'm going to pick you up right now, alright? I don't want you driving on your own if you're like five ticks away from panicking on me. Could you try calming down for me? Take deep breaths for me, will you? I'll even stay on the phone with you, until I get to you."

To Keith's fortune, the McClains didn't live that far away, only 20 doboshes by car, 15 if Lance ignored the speed limit. Like he did right now. Usually, Lance wouldn't rush anywhere with his car, safety first and all, but since nothing he did could calm his beloved, he wanted to get to him as fast as possible. The tick the door of the apartment opened, Lance had his arms full of Keith, who seemed to be desperate for affection right now. The brunet didn't waste a tick, scooped him up in his arms and carried him back to his car. He didn't immediately drive off, though. Instead, Lance cuddled with him in the front seat until he was calm enough for a proper conversation. Lance even peppered his loved one with countless butterfly kisses, just to show him he was there for him.

After some time, Keith finally opened up, "Thank you, Lance… I'm sorry for calling you so late, I thought I could handle this but… It had never gotten that bad before!"

A hand found its way into Keith's hair, softly patting his head as new tears slipped down his cheeks. _God, why am I getting so emotional! I've been alone for like half of my life, so why does it hurt so much NOW?!_ One of his hands immediately went down to his stomach as if to answer his unspoken question. A tiny smile flitted across his face at the feeling of his slowly forming baby bump under his hand. To imagine that a tiny living miracle was growing inside of him, still had him in awe, no matter how often he thought about it. He just couldn’t wrap his head around the idea. Although that didn’t mean he wasn’t overjoyed. With his gaze fixed on his stomach, he didn’t notice the hand joining his own down there until the gentle touch had him look up. Soft lips captured his, catching Keith by surprise.

"Smiling suits you, cariño. I'm just glad that I can help you. That you asked _me_ for help. I personally don't know shit about Galran pregnancies, but seeing how strongly affected you are right now… I'm going to make sure you get all the love and cuddles that you desire. Because I care that much about you. Let's get you back to my place, mom is waiting for you.”

Keith, too exhausted to respond back, simply nodded and let the other handle the situation. The drive back to McClain residence was uneventful - the ravenette even dozed off. By the time they returned, Lance carried him bridal style into the house, where his mom and Veronica were already waiting. Worried about Keith's state of health mamá Rosa McClain exclaimed, "Oh hijo, que paso? Desapareciste tan de repente! Además de eso, con una expresión tan seria!" **(Oh son, what happened? You disappeared so suddenly! On top of that, with such a serious expression!)**

The former Paladin did feel bad about scaring his mother, first and foremost considering how he had disappeared to space all those deca-phoebs ago, but he simply couldn't ignore a cry for help. Especially if it was one coming from his beloved. Worst of all, he still didn't have an explanation himself, so there was nothing he could offer to reassure his family. However, Keith was too out of it at the moment to speak about what had happened, so there was nothing Lance could do to ease his mamá's concern. When he went to the living room to place his _newly acquired_ _boyfriend_ on the sofa, a distressed whine left Keith's lips the moment Lance _attempted_ to let go of him. He even went koala on him to make sure he wasn't separated from Lance! Apparently, this small but significant gesture was enough to convince both women to talk about whatever had happened at a later time, seeing how she pushed her son towards his bedroom with the words, "Hablaremos de esto mañana. Cuida a tu compañero, pero no creo que deba recordártelo." **(We'll talk about this tomorrow. Take care of your partner, but I don't think I need to remind you.)**

With a grateful expression, Lance leaned down and kissed her cheek, before he thanked her quietly, "Gracias mamá. No sé qué pasó. Keith estaba en pánico cuando me llamó y aún no se ha explicado." **(Keith was in a panic when he called me, and he still hasn't explained himself.)**

Since Lance had nothing else to tell her, he fastened his grip on his sleepy boyfriend and carried him up to his room. His heart melted at the sight of Keith, who immediately snuggled into Lance's bedsheets once he was put down, obviously contend in the otherwise unfamiliar bed. The brunet didn't know why this was different then the sofa downstairs, but he shrugged it off for now. All that mattered was that Keith was comfortable. Smiling to himself, Lance stripped down to his boxers and climbed into bed next to him. Upon sensing the warm brunet next to him, Keith snuggled closer, nestled his head against the other's chest and wrapped his arms around Lance's middle. It was a gesture so adorable Lance had a hard time stopping himself from cooing, so he wrapped his own arms around the ravenette's waist. Cuddling with the love of his life hadn't been on his agenda that qintant, but it was a truly welcome thing to add. Anytime.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I haven't learned spanish at the moment, that's a plan for when start studying next year, so please correct me if google translate lied to me somehwere^^


End file.
